When the chips were down, the Greens closed shop and forced its rival into submission
Panathinaikos ground down Anadolu Efes with airtight defense
Article
3 Mins read
Anadolu Efes Istanbul looked like staging an upset for much of Game 1 of its EuroLeague Playoffs series at defending champion Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens, but the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague holder showed the makings of a title-winning outfit when it mattered.
Trailing 64-72 at the end of the third quarter after being down by as many as 12 points, Panathinaikos dug deep into its resources and eked out an 87-83 victory after an ironclad defensive performance in the fourth.
Efes had started the game on 0 of 6 from deep in the first quarter and finished the rip-roaring contest with another barrage of misses from downtown, a testament to Panathinaikos making life difficult for the Turkish outfit when the game was on the line.
The home team’s big man Juancho Hernangomez emerged with career highs of 20 points and 16 boards, pouring in the baskets at one end of the court while racking up the rebounds at the other to help Panathinaikos protect its home-court advantage.
Hernangomez acknowledged the performance left a lot to be desired despite the outcome and singled out the home team’s pack leader Kendrick Nunn, who battled through a tough night to register 15 points and 5 assists.
Crucially, the last of those was one when he dished out a superb pass to Jerian Grant, who sank a clutch three to make the score 85-80 and effectively seal the game as a contest.
“We never give up but this Efes team is really dangerous,” a visibly relieved Hernangomez said in his post-game comments. “We were up and down, to be honest, we really didn’t play well. So let’s watch the tape and be back for the second game.
“We have a lot of talent on this team and many players who are able to step up. We have the league’s MVP in Nunn and we follow his lead. He did a great job dishing out passes tonight, not least the one to Grant whose shot decided the game. We need everyone as this could be a long series.”
Game Videos
- 00:12
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Kostas Sloukas with a crazy buzzer-beater! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:09
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Oturu with a mighty dunk! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:21
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Oturu with the alley-oop! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:12
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Jerian Grant shows big hustle! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:12
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Poirier with the put-back slam! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:08
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Poirier with a fierce small-dunk! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:57
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Juancho Hernangomez: 'We have a lot of talent, everybody can step up'
- 00:44
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Jerian Grant: 'That's what championship teams do'
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Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens-Anadolu Efes Istanbul | PO Game-1 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:24
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Yurtseven at it again! Motorola Magic Moment of the Night
- 00:11
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Grant seals the win! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:11
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Juancho flies to the rim! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:16
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Larkin and Dozier conjure some magic! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:10
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Oturu with a strong dunk! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:13
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Poirier rips the rim! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:09
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Yurtseven on the alley-oop! Motorola Magic Moment
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Follow the post-game press conferences here
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Kendrick NUNN Got MIC’D UP and SCORED BIG | AS Monaco - Panathinaikos
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The 7th Star - Trailer
- 00:52
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Kendrick Nunn: 'The one I'm most proud of is the 10 assists'
![https://media-cdn.cortextech.io/d2db2da2-5747-4a2c-85d5-6c3fce493ffc.jpg]()
Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens-Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade | RS Round 34 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:24
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Poirier with a big dunk! Motorola Magic Moment of the Night
- 02:30
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Shane Larkin: 'We've had to win every single game to get here'
![https://media-cdn.cortextech.io/ba942191-98e0-4bac-a768-97dba111b91c.jpg]()
Anadolu Efes Istanbul-Zalgiris Kaunas | RS Round 34 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:16
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Nwora with a massive dunk! Motorola Magic Moment
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EuroLeague 25 Moments: When Panathinaikos took Virtus’s crown in 2002
- 00:52
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Vincent Poirier: 'Really proud of the team and what we've accomplished so far'
![https://media-cdn.cortextech.io/6183de28-f75a-4657-9218-b3ef7593c469.jpg]()
Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade-Anadolu Efes Istanbul | RS Round 33 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:12
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A sublime alley oop from Poirier! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:09
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A ferocious dunk from Thompson! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:41
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Kendrick Nunn: 'We came here with one job: to win'
![https://media-cdn.cortextech.io/4990cf7f-d53c-41a1-9be1-9ff5569e3f25.jpg]()
AS Monaco-Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens | RS Round 33 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:11
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Title hereGabriel attacks the rim! Motorola Magic Moment
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Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens-Paris Basketball | RS Round 32 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
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Anadolu Efes Istanbul-Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv | RS Round 32 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:12
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Thompson to Poirier alley-oop! Motorola Magic Moment
- 01:24
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Juancho Hernangomez: 'Great teams keep fighting until the end'
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Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv-Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens | RS Round 31 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:32
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Shane Larkin breaking ankles! Motorola Magic Moment of the Night
- 00:22
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Gabriel dominates on both ends! Motorola Magic Moment
- 01:31
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Shane Larkin: 'To catch our rhythm at the right time is perfect'
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Anadolu Efes Istanbul-Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz | RS Round 31 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:15
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Nunn rejects Clark! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:15
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Jordan Nwora denies his opponent! Motorola Magic Moment
- 00:12
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Bryant sets up Poirier for an alley-oop! Motorola Magic Moment
- 01:12
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Elijah Bryant: 'Maybe I'll have some ice cream to celebrate'
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Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade-Anadolu Efes Istanbul | RS Round 30 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:42
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Jerian Grant: 'It was one of the most special nights of my life'
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Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens-ALBA Berlin | RS Round 30 Highlights | 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague
- 00:14
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Nunn destroys the rim! Motorola Magic Moment
Grant added: “We’ve only won one game and we know we have to win three so we have to play better than we did tonight.”
The home team’s head coach Ergin Ataman, who faced his former club Efes for the first time in a postseason matchup after winning back-to-back titles with the Turkish team in 2021 and 2022, praised Hernangomez before addressing his team’s dip in the second quarter.
“Juancho put in a great performance tonight, he spent 39 minutes on the court and congratulations to him,” Ataman told the postgame press conference.
“I am not happy with our defense in the second quarter as we conceded 30 points in this period of the game but having trailed, we got more aggressive when we needed to. The real problem in the second quarter was the offense as we took too many early shots and hence gave away a lot of fast break points.”